Spurrier and Saban starting to spar a bit

HOOVER, Ala. - Nick Saban was asking reporters Thursday at the Wynfrey Hotel how all this (expletive deleted) started with Steve Spurrier.

Saban answered his own question. It started with Spurrier. It always starts with Spurrier.

Spurrier started real passing in the Southeastern Conference in the 1990s when he was Florida's revolutionary coach. He started real winning at Florida in the 1990s for the first time in the history of that program, which did not win an SEC title until Spurrier showed it how in 1990. He started real domination of the SEC like it had not been seen since the 1970s under former Alabama coach Bear Bryant.

Spurrier won seven SEC championships at Florida, though the first one is null off the field because of NCAA penalties prior to Spurrier. Bryant is the only coach with more SEC titles than Spurrier, who won the national championship in the 1997 season and reached the game the year before.

Spurrier is a Hall of Fame coach who will go down as one of the greatest in SEC history. He also is the best needler of opposing coaches in the history of the game.

Spurrier likes to mess with other coaches. He always has. And he's good at it. He constantly teased and provoked former Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer even though the two played every season. "You can't spell Citrus Bowl without U-T," he said.

He took jabs at state rival Florida State when the Seminoles were on their run of dominance in the 1990s. He called FSU "Free Shoes University," after the NCAA started investigating FSU's shopping sprees at Foot Locker. Never mind that Spurrier's program was recently put on probation because his players were getting hotel rooms for under $15 a night.

He takes jabs at Mark Richt, the coach of border rival Georgia, which won the East last season even though it lost to South Carolina early in the season. "I sort of always liked playing them that second game because you could always count on them having two or three key players suspended," Spurrier said. Never mind that Spurrier suspended quarterback Stephen Garcia five times before finally kicking him off the team last season. With that many suspension lives, Ryan Perrilloux could have played all four years at LSU.

Spurrier is an equal opportunity needler. He goes after everybody - shrimps, bullies, nice guys and those like Fulmer, who did not always realize he was being lampooned. It doesn't matter.

Spurrier even went after the biggest dog last spring - Saban, winner of three national championships since 2003 at two schools and two national titles in the last three seasons at Alabama.

"He's got a nice little gig going, a little bit like John Calipari," Spurrier said to ESPN.com. "He tells guys, 'Hey, three years from now, you're going to be a first round pick and go." Never mind that Calipari has guys do that after one season. One has to get coached and molded for three in college football before the draft.

"If he wants to be the greatest coach or one of the greatest coaches in college football, to me, he has to go somewhere besides Alabama and win because they've always won there at Alabama," Spurrier continued. Never mind that Alabama had four coaches and four losing seasons between its last national championship in 1992 and its next one in 2009 under Saban. Never mind that Saban won a national championship in 2003 at LSU, which had not won one since 1958 and had eight losing seasons in the 11 years prior to Saban.

Saban, 60, took some shots back at Spurrier on Wednesday. "You know, there are some other coaches in this league, like Steve Spurrier, that are older than me that I look up to that are my mentors that I really learn a lot from and that I really want to try to be like," he said. "In fact, I was even going to consider wearing a visor on the sidelines this year. But I was afraid I'd throw it."

Saban told the same story on a radio show before his appearance at Media Days. He sounded like it was light and funny to him, but it is not. Spurrier's little jabs have gotten under Saban's skin as much as Miles' little jabs have in the past.

Saban is right, though. He could learn from Spurrier. He is 1-3 against him, and the losses are by an average of 25 points. But Saban leads Spurrier in national championships, 3-1, and that needles Spurrier more than words can say. So does the fact that Saban is seen as the SEC's premier coach now, and Spurrier might not even be second. Miles is in that spot and is 2-0 against Spurrier with the same number of national championships (one) and national championship runner-up finishes (one).

Spurrier's legacy is secure. He will leave as one of the best coaches in SEC history. But he will not leave on top, and he knows it.

It's just too bad Alabama and South Carolina do not play this season. It would be great the week after LSU and Alabama.

Glenn Guilbeau writes about LSU for Gannett Louisiana. Email him at gguilbeau@gannett.com.

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Spurrier and Saban starting to spar a bit

HOOVER, Ala. - Nick Saban was asking reporters Thursday at the Wynfrey Hotel how all this (expletive deleted) started with Steve Spurrier.Saban answered his own question. It started with Spurrier. It